Sanitary self-closing faucet



v Aug. 24, 1943. R. H. mm mm.

CLOSING FAUCET Filled y 8. 1942' SANITARY 'SELF- z f. 6 w r j 50/ GeoL%7Z667( Patentecl Aug. 24, 1943 2,327,574 s mrAaYsELF-cLosmG FAUCETRQoy HhZinkiLOak Park, Carl U. Larson, Berwyn,

and George E.]Hansen, Chicago, ,]1l.,,assignors to Crane 00., Chicago,Ill., a corporation of Illinois Apnlidationillday s, 1942, Serial No.443,510

5 Claims.

This invention relates to a valve and more'particularly to a new andimproved type .of'sanitary,

self-closing faucet. It 'has forone of its principal objects theprovision of .a sleeve ;type.pushbutton actuator which, in addition tofacilitating the actuation of the faucet: also serves to enclose theoutlet of the valve atall times when the valve is not open. It therebypreventslthe accumulation of dust and other foreign matter'lwhichnormally lodges in and about a faucet spout particularly when the latteris exposed to outdoor conditions.

Another and still further important objectof this invention is toprovide a positive. closing faucet which eliminates objectionabledripping fromthe spout upon closing of the faucet. .It should be readilyunderstood that'where sucha faucet is used to dispense liquids which.are relatively valuable or possibly highly inflammable the eliminationof dripping afterthefaucet has been closed results in a real saving..measured from the angle of dollars and centsuandlalso in reducing orpreventing damage .to.1ifeland.prop

pact self-closing faucet :for Luse on; dispensing containers whichquickly. effects. full ;;opening ,therebyallowing forgacsmooth streampfiflllid t0 flow from the! outlet spout; withaminimum tendencyito splash.

.An important object of this inventionisitp pro.-

vide a self-.closingfaucet :With a sanitarytactuating .cover preferablytelescopically movable and servingalsogas afaucetoutl'et; i Afurther'important, object .ofithis inventionis toprovide in a. device ofthis charaster.athrot-v tlingmember: associated with the ;-closure;.imember whereby substantial flow throu h :the faucet during the initial orcracking, portion-of the opening movement of the 1 valve; is minimized.and; is also; coordinated and: alignedwithithe discharge outletpassagepfthe actuating means. .j

. A further objec sito: p Qvidejiin a 1;devi,c'e ;of this-type means:whereby theactuating .imeans: is pa l of lon i udinal-m v ments butzisinraine n dr nonero tahle-relative tozthezvalteibody. Qtherximp rtanobjec n dvantiasesofithe. invention w lxap s the.desc nt onproceeds;

Referringtothe drawing: y l g I l ws a ti a ssemblvsview :of'the l l auc-'7 of th inv ntion :as applied toawater containenor the e. 4;. 1 Fi 2 hw -a r t" atenorxv ewni the faucet apr e 'te ta n sh w-n in:-Eis-:-

Directing attention to Fig.1, the reference numeral I indicatesgenerally a container from whichit. is desired to dispense liquid,as-for example, from a military water canteen or the like. The containershown is equipped with a handle 2 and a preferably inclined surface 3.having an aperture or passage therethrough at 54 within which is mountedthe novel valve of this invention. As generally indicated, thepush-button self-closing valve comprises a :body creasing -6 having arearwardly extending threaded shank 1 adapted to projectwithin thecontainerl through the aperture l and is fixedly held in position bymeans of the locknutii. A gasket 9 is positioned between the. containerwall and a shoulder of the valve body, as indicated, to prevent leakagetherepast.

A cap or telescoping sleeve member ll isarranged to snugly engage thebody portion 6 of the valve. In order to accommodate the inner valveactuating parts,,the body 6 is provided with a central bore or recess l2which terminates in a passage of smaller diameter within the shankportion 7,.as shown at I3. A shoulder or offset portion M is therebyformed between the small passage [,3 and the recess l2. At the inner end7 of the shank ,1 a raised annular ridge [5 is formed which functions asthe valve seat. Actingin cooperative engagement with the said'seat orridge [6 the closure member or disc]! 1 is providedwhich is made of anysuitable material. fIhe closure member, H is fixedly mounted upon athreaded end portion E8 of a shaft or stem l9. The disc I! is preferablyshouldered against an enlarged annular portion 2| of the stem i9, f0rmig aclose fit within the bore IS. The disc'is shouldered againsttheenlarged annular portion 2| by means of a preferably; metal supportingwasher 22 W ith the locknut ;23 engaging the threaded shank 18. Theforward endpof the stem [9 is similarly p-rovided with a threadedportion24 and has-the knob-like member 26 threadedly engaged therewith whichserves to hold the capmember ll in slidable relationship with the body}.The outer or forward end of the cap II is-provided with a closed end 21having a central aperture 28 therethrough beyond whi h the shankportion?!) of the knob zii projects. Asindicated-theenlarged knob 28abutsthe closed end1,2'l of the sleeve element I. An inwardly-extendinglugopprejection 3| of the cap II is slidably nov able therewith in thelongitudinally-extending groove 32 formed over the outer portion ofthebody fi. The latter arrangementpermits a: telescoping slidingmovement of the sleevell over the-peripheral surface of the body 6 but,however, prevents any rotation of the sleeve II with respect to the body6. This provision is important for reasons hereinafter explained.

Intermediate the ends of the shaft I9, a piston element is positionedwhich piston member comprises a cup-shaped member 33 having an outerrecessed portion within which the shank 29 of the knob 26 is received.As shown, the bottom or back of the cup-shaped member 33 serves as asupport for the sealing member or packing 34 which engages thecircumference of the shaft I9 and the annular wall of the bore I2 of thebody 6 in fluid-sealing relationship; The opposite side of the packing34 is annularly supported by the washer member 33, the latter beingresiliently held in place by the compression spring 31. The coil spring3'! extends between the shoulder I4 and. the member 38 and, asindicated, thereby normally maintains the closure member I? in sealingengagement with the seat I6. The body 6 of the valve is equipped withaside outlet port 38 acting as the outlet spout of the faucet. It

will be readily apparent that when the valve is aligned with the outletport 33 of the casing when the faucet is opened by pressing the knob 26together with the sleeve II inwardly.

'I'o'operate the knob or push-button 28 it is simply pushed inwardly orforwardly to an extent that when it has reached its inward limit ofmovement the closuremember I! is then wide open. (The inner portion ofthe cap I I will then abut against the end surface of the casing 6.) Atthis point the aperture 39 in the cap II .is in alignment with andcoincides exactly with the outlet'port'33of the casing therebypermitting the passage of liquidfrom thecontainer 1 past the closuremember I? and. thence through the bore l3 to the bore I2 and past theoutlet port iii and the complementary aperture 39 of the sleeve As'shownin Fig. 1, the valve being seated, a solid portion of the-wall of thecap I I covers the outlet port38. Since there is a relatively snug fitbetween the periphery of the casing and the-inner diameter of the cap,this arrangement substantially prevents any dripping fro-m the faucetafter pressure is released from the knob and, in addition, provides asanitary cover for the outlet port which in the conventional faucet maybecome an extremely objectionable sourceof trouble from a sanitaryviewpoint. Obviously the angularity or'pitch of the passage 68 may varydepending upon the angle of installation of the valve so as to dischargepi'eferably'a vertical stream.

' A further feature incombination with the latter described arrangementlies in the provision to throttle the flow'of fluid through the faucetuntil such time as the respective apertures 33 and 39 are properlyaligned. Such throttling of the flow is accomplished by use of theenlarged annular'portion 2| onthe stem or shaft I9. This throttlingmember 2| engages the wall of the bore I 3 relatively snugly, that is,with a minimum clearance therebetween. It thus acts to center or guidethe shaft or stem I9 in the faucet body and more importantly enables thedisc to be maintained centrally of the seat I3 thereby effecting a tightseal when the disc or closure member engages the seat. Assuming now thatthe faucet is being opened very gradually. The closure member then islifted only slightly from its seat It, and very little if any flow offluid through the faucet will result for the reason that the throttlingmember 2| almost fills the passage through which the discharging fluidmust necessarily pass. This condition of substantial nonfiowtherethrough is maintained until the faucet its seat and therebypermitting greatly increased flow around the stem or shaft I9 throughthev passages I3 and I2 respectively, thence out through the outlet port38 and through the now aligned aperture 39 in the wall of the cap II.i

Thus the purpose of the throttling member TM -is to prevent anyappreciable flow'of fluid. until the apertures 38 and 39 are insubstantial align; ment. While the faucet may be operated without theuse of the throttle member 2| a pinching of the flow 'ofliquid wouldresult between the then only slightly overlapping apertures 38 and 39causing a splashing and a fan-like spray of liquid emitting from thefaucet rather than a full smooth stream obtained by the arrangementherein described The throttling member lZI It is apparent that thenumerous details'of j construction may be varied throughout a wide rangeof equivalent structuresv without'departing'from the principles andpurposes of ourinlvention. It is therefore not intended to limit thescope-of the appended claims otherwise than I as necessitated by theprior art,

We claim: a I Y 1. A self-closing faucet comprising a body having aninlet with a central passage and an outlet passage through the sidethereof, a seat on an end portion of the said body, a closure memberpositioned externally of the said body, a stem mount.- ed within thesaid central passage of the body suitablefor actuating the said closuremember, r'esilientmeans adapted to hold said closurelmem5 ber in seatedposition, a cap member telescoplcally positioned over the said body andmovable longitudinally with said stem, throttling means substantiallyfilling'the inlet of the'body when the closure member is seated and forapredeter mined period when the closure member is un seated-the said capmember having an aperture therein, whereby when the said stem and thesaid cap member are pressed forward. simultaneously the closure memberis lifted from its seat and the aperture in the said cap member issubsequently placedinsubstantial alignment with'the outlet passage inthe body, the 'said capjmember serving as a guide in effecting theaccurate 'aligm ment of the side outlet passage of thebody'fwith closure-membena stem for actuating" the said closure member and extendingthrough the communicating chamber of the said body, throttling meansnormally positioned within the inlet of the said body, resilient'meanspositioned within" the said communicating chamber and arranged tomaintain the closure member in a seated position, a telescoping capmember positioned over said body, the said cap member having an aperturetherein, whereby predetermined forward motion of the stern and capmembers simultaneously provides for substantial alignment of theaperture of the said cap member with the outlet from the saidcommunicating chamber, the said throttling means consisting of acylindrical member normally closely fitting within the said inlet andhaving an inner tapered reduced portion, the said latter portion beingpositioned immediately adjacent the said seat upon alignment of the capmember aperture with the outlet of the said body to complete asubstantially unbroken passage therefrom.

3. A self-closing dispensing faucet comprising a body having a centralpassage, the said body having an inlet passage and a side outletconnected by said central passage with said inlet passage, a closuremember normally seated at an end portion of the said body, a stem forthe said closure member mounted within the said central passage, meanson-the opposite end of said stem for effecting reciprocal movement ofthe said stem, resilient means cooperating with said stem and positionedwithin the central passage of the said body, the said resilient meansbeing adapted to maintain the said closure mem- .cover the side outletof the body and telescopically movable in relation thereto, the saidstem being longitudinally movable simultaneous with a similar movementof the said cap member, the said cap member having a side aperturetherein, throttling means on the said stem and normally positionedsnugly within the inlet passage of the said body whereby initially flowtherethrough will be substantially retarded and whereby when said stemis pressed inwardly a predetermined distance the said cap member issimultaneously caused to move inwardly to provide for the aperture inthe said cap member being complementary to the side outlet of the saidbody.

4. A self-closing faucet or the like comprising a body having an inletand an outlet, the said body having a passage running centrally thereofone end of which constitutes said inlet and a valve seat, a closuremember adapted to engage said seat, a stem for said closure memberextending within the said central passage, actuating means at one end ofthe said stem, resilient means cooperating with said stem and positionedintermediate said actuating means and a shoulder portion Within saidcentral passage, the said CPI resilient means serving to normallymaintain the said closure member in seated relation to the said valveseat, a throttling member on said stem adjacent said closure membersnugly fitted within a portion of the central passage, a captelescopically fitted over the said body and adapted to movelongitudinally and non-rotatably relative to the said body upon similarmovement of the said actuating means, the said cap having an aperturetherein adapted to be brought into registration with said outlet wherebywhen the actuating means is moved inwardly initially the 010- suremember is unseated but appreciable flow of fluid therepast is preventeduntil-the actuating means has been moved substantially its maximumdistance and whereby the aperture in the said cap and the outlet of thesaid body form a substantially unbroken passage for the discharge offluid from the central passage, the length of that portion of the saidthrottling member snugly fitting within the central passage beingsubstantially equal to the distance between centers of the cap member,aperture and the outlet' of the body when the closure member is seated.

5. A valve of the character described comprising a body having an inletand an outlet, the said body having a passage extending centrallythereof one end of which constitutes the said inlet, a disc adapted toreciprocably engage and disengage a portion of the said inlet, a stemfor the said disc extending through said central passage, actuatingmeans at the end of said stem opposite said disc, resilient meanscooperating with said stem to normally maintain the said disc againstsaid portion of said inlet in seated relationship, substantiallycylindrical throttling means on the said stem adjacent said inlet, a captelescoping the said body and adapted to slide relative to said bodyupon movement of said actuating means, the said cap having an aperturetherein adapted to be brought into registration with said outlet wherebywhen the actuating means is moved inwardly the disc is lifted from theportion of the said inlet, the said throttling means preventingappreciable flow of fluid within said inlet until the stem actuatingmeans has traveled substantially a maximum distance inwardly at whichpoint the aperture in the said cap coincides with the outlet of thebody, means cooperating with the said body and cap whereby rotationalmovement of the said cap with relation to the said body is prevented.

ROY I-I. ZINKIL.

CARL U. LARSON.

GEORGE E. HANSEN.

